Whispers in the Dark
by JustNotNormal
Summary: Grace Westbrook never asked to be a demigod, she just was. Whisked away to camp from her home in England, will she ever discover her godly parent? And will she ever see her mortal parents again? And those are just the start of her problems... My first ever fan fiction, please give it a try! Rated T because I'm a cool kid! (And because I'm paranoid)
1. Chapter 1

**[A/N] Hello, this is my first ever story on this website, so I hope you like it! (if there is actually anyone reading this.)**

**Please review, it means a lot. Also thanks to CR3ATIV3 for editing and proofreading!**

Why did I have to be a demigod? I didn't ask to be one, I just was. I liked living at home, unaware of the dangers surrounding me. There aren't many monsters in Britain, or so I thought!

My name is Grace, I am fourteen years old. My story starts on a normal Tuesday morning. I woke up in my small, plain bedroom, put on my school uniform - a shirt, blue and grey striped tie, blazer and skirt, brushed my wavy, honey blonde hair into a ponytail and went downstairs to the kitchen. My parents were sat at the kitchen table drinking coffee and reading newspapers. Everything was normal, as usual. Nothing very exciting ever happened here, in my sleepy little hometown, and, although I didn't love it, that was how it was. I accepted it.

"Good morning, darling." Said my Mum as she glanced up from her newspaper. I stared as her straight, brown hair fell over her shoulder from behind her ear while her chocolate-brown eyes peek up at me from behind her reading glasses.

I had often wondered where my blonde hair and bright sea-green eyes came from. My father's short hair was also brown, and his eyes pale blue-grey. I looked away and sat, pondering this thought, as I buttered myself a crumpet. My Dad placed a mug of tea in front of me. I took a sip and grimaced.

"Pass the sugar, please." I asked my father politely. I stirred several teaspoons of sugar into the pale brown liquid and took another sip, much better."Grace, you are a nuisance." Dad chuckled quietly. I grinned at him.

I ate quickly, then picked up my red school rucksack and shoved a book inside. I'm dyslexic, but that has never stopped my love of reading. I still struggled sometimes, but mostly, I could get through a good book quite quickly. "Bye Mum, bye Dad!" I called as I hurried out the front door.

I strolled down the quiet street, towards Midfield High School. It was only a short walk, about ten minutes, but it was lonely walking on my own. At last I arrived at the peeling blue gates, watching people swarming in, chatting, and laughing. I moved slowly through the crowds towards the grey concrete and glass blocks that contained the classrooms.

The year nine registration rooms were on the ground floor, and as soon as I stepped through the door into the noisy classroom, a bottle was thrown at my head. It was a regular occurrence, not that that meant it didn't still bother me. It did. It really did. It landed on my forehead, splashing blue energy drink all over my head and white shirt. I turned around, sighing in frustration, and headed straight back out to the toilets to wash it off.

As I pushed past people in the corridor, I heard jeers and people laughing at me.

"Grace!" Someone called from behind me. Kevin, a sixth former, who tutored me in English because of my dyslexia. "What happened?"

"What do you think?" I muttered.

"Go and clean up, quick. I'll see you later." He patted my shoulder comfortingly, and then left. I've always been bullied. Partly because I stick up for people who can't stick up for themselves, which is obviously a crime that needs to be punished, and, of course, people don't like nerds. No one knew I was dyslexic but it never stopped me doing my best.

I ducked into the empty toilets and stuck my head in the sink washing the sticky blue stuff out of my hair. I used tissues to dry off my shirt leaving a weird blue stain. "my mum's going to kill me!" I muttered under my breath. The bell went as I left the toilets, and I sighed. Great, another day to be constantly bullied! I went into the classroom and sat in my chair at the back of the room, ignoring the quiet jeers and muttering from my classmates, as the teacher called my name on the register.

"Grace Westbrook!"

"Here." I mumbled miserably. Could this day get any worse?

At the end of the day, I waited at the gates for Kevin, wondering how to explain my blue-stained shirt to my parents. To top it all off, there was a purple bruise on my forehead as well. Kevin was coming over to help me with my homework, as he always did on Tuesdays.

"Hey. Are you okay?" He asked, walking up to me. "Yeah, I suppose." I replied, starting to walk back to my house.

"Why don't you tell someone...about the bullying?" questioned Kevin.

"Because I don't want to make a fuss, it would just make things worse." I said quietly.

"Grace, you need to sort this out. Promise me you will." Kevin said sternly, pressing his baseball cap more firmly over his curly brown hair.

"Okay but-" I started, but was cut off by a huge shadow suddenly swooping over us.

"Grace! Duck!" I heard Kevin yell. I threw myself at the concrete pavement, and felt heat behind me. I rolled over and saw a column of fire bearing down on me. I rolled out of the way, pain shooting through my arm, where the fire hit. I looked up.

Flying above me was what looked like a lion with white, feathery wings and razor sharp teeth and talons. It flew towards me and spat more flames at me. I felt a searing pain in my leg, and stumbled back, down the bank into the river running along the road.

The cool water soothed my burning skin and I felt sudden power and energy surging through my veins, dizzying me and filling me with a kind of mad happiness. "Grace!" Kevin was at the top of the bank.

"Catch!" He threw something long, shining and bronze to me. A sword! I caught it by the hilt just as the huge lion-thing landed in front of me. I really didn't want to get burned again, "I have to kill it, before it kills me!" I thought. Flames burst from its mouth and I rolled underneath them. That tactic worked to I did it again and again, running and rolling, until I had gotten around its back.

I charged at the monster, yelling and waving the sword, which I had gripped with both hands. The creature span around and lashed out with its talons, slicing my shoulder. I gasped, before I lunged forward with the sword, plunging into the lion's neck. It roared, an agonised, impossibly loud noise. It then leaped onto me, knocking me over onto the bank and sunk its long, yellow teeth, dripping purple fluid, into my arm.

I watched, while my breathing slowed down, getting more ragged, as the monster slowly disintegrated, leaving a pile of gold dust. My eyes slid shut, the pain washing over me, as I slowly slipped away from consciousness.

**New chapters will be added soon so keep checking back if you liked it! Thanks so much! Cookies:  
(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(: :)**

**Please read my editor (and best friend) CR3ATIV3's stories! She mainly writes THG fanfiction!**


	2. Chapter 2

**[A/N] So here's chapter 2, as you can obviously see. Enjoy reading and please review!**

**Thanks to CR3ATIV3 for editing and proofreading!**

**I am a 13 year old girl from the UK, not Rick Riordan, so I own nothing except the plot and my own characters.**

I woke up slowly, golden light filtering through my eyelids. I could feel a comfortable bed underneath me. I opened my eyes and blinked groggily, taking in my surroundings.

I was in a room full of beds, some empty. People were bustling around and sitting by the beds. My injured arm was bandaged, and I was still wearing my now tattered school uniform. Kevin was sat next to my bed, wearing an orange T-shirt with 'CHB' on it. He wasn't wearing any trousers, and his legs were furry. Where his feet should have been were hooves.

"You're a..." I started, but Kevin cut me off.

"Grace! How are you feeling?" He asked, smiling.

"I've been better. Where are we?" I asked, trying to push myself up with my good arm. Kevin pushed me back.

"Stay still. We're in Camp Half-Blood." He replied.

"How did we get here, where ever here is?" I asked.

"It's a camp for Greek demigods. In Long Island, America. I drove us here in my car, which is enchanted to travel long distances extremely fast. It can also go over water. We arrived three days ago. We weren't sure you'd make it. That monster's poison almost killed you!" He explained shakily, as if the thought still scared him.

"Demigods?" I asked warily.

"Demigods. You know we do Greek mythology in school? Well, all that stuff is real. Sometimes, Gods come down to Earth and fall in love with mortals, and well, sometimes they have kids!" Kevin explained to me. I knew quite a bit about Greek mythology. I had found it really interesting in school, but it had never crossed my mind that it might be real!

"But there's no such this as Gods." I replied, determined to find a flaw in his elaborate scheme.

"Don't let them hear you say that." Kevin replied, grinning. Another guy around 25 years old walked over and sat on the other side of my bed.

"Hey Kevin. Hey Grace. How are you?" He asked, setting down a glass of what looked like apple juice. I took a sip and recoiled. It tasted of creamy hot chocolate, with a hint of cinnamon, just like I made at home.

"I'm okay. When can I go home?" I asked Kevin as the boy unwrapped the bandage from my arm.

"Er... That's the problem. We can't let you go home. It's too dangerous for you to go back without any training, and we need to know who your godly parent is." Kevin explained awkwardly.

"But I'm not a demigod!" I said angrily. "I have both my parents!"

"You wouldn't have been able to cross the camp borders if you weren't a demigod. Either one of them, or neither of them are your real parents. The mist, which keeps mortals from seeing monsters, will have changed their memories. They won't remember you anymore, unless they are your real parents. I'm sorry, Grace."

Once my arm was wrapped in a clean bandage and I had changed into a clean, orange T-shirt and jeans, Kevin started to show me around. He explained the cabins, and told me I would be in Hermes cabin until I was claimed by my godly parent. Poseidon's cabin was empty, as was Zeus's and Hera's. Kevin told me that several years ago, there had been a law that Poseidon, Zeus and Hades couldn't have children, and since that law had been lifted, they still hadn't had any.

After the tour, he took me back to the Big House to meet Chiron and Mr D. We found them in the lounge, playing a complicated card game I didn't know.

"So this is the new camper? What's your name?" Asked Chiron, who I noticed was a centaur, or something if remember correctly. We learnt about ancient Greece in our history classes.

"Grace Westbrook." I replied quietly.

"Kevin will take you down to Aphrodite cabin. I'm sure some of the girls will have spare clothes for you. You are rather small, so I'm sure they will have some hand-me-downs in your size." He said. I frowned inwardly. I knew I was small; I didn't need people telling me.

"C'mon, Grace, it won't be that bad." Kevin said as he took me down to the Aphrodite cabin, in which a couple of kids were gossiping and organising clothes. Only one girl wasn't included in the chatter. She was sat in the corner, her strawberry-blonde hair in a sleek knot. She was wearing a pretty Greek-style white dress with a brown belt, and her face, perfectly made up.

"That's Jess. She arrived last week. She still has Aphrodite's enchantment over her from when she was claimed." Kevin explained. "Jess!" He called.

"What?" The girl replied irritably.

"Can you look around for any spare clothes for Grace?"

After ten minutes I had another pair of jeans, a pair of white shorts and a soft blue jacket.

"We can get you some more T-shirts from Chiron later." Kevin told me. "Thanks, Jess." He said to the girl.

"No problem." She replied miserably.

Kevin left me in Hermes cabin to settle in. It was relatively plain, compared to the other cabins. There were no special decorations except a caduceus design on the back wall. Jack, the 17 year old head of the cabin, a tall, thin boy, assigned me an empty bed by the door. There had been a time, he told me, when the cabin was so full of unclaimed demigods that people had to sleep on the floor!

He gave me a time table of the day's activities, then Jack and the only other year-rounder, Jack's 15 year old sister Rebecca, left the cabin and I was alone.

The day's events started catching up with me, all the emotions that I had pushed down. The shock, the anger the sadness that had been lost in the confusion, excitement and the pure curiosity. Tears started slipping down my cheeks and I brushed them away angrily. I wasn't going to show how scared or nervous I was.

I would prove that this small, lost girl was stronger than they thought. I would prove them wrong.

**Thanks for reading!**

**Please visit CR3ATIV3's profile and read her stories, as she is a friend of mine and her stuff's really good! (She also made me tell you this.)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello again! I have a slightly longer chapter for you this time!  
I own NOTHING. (Except my own characters and plot.)**

According to the timetable in my hand, the Hermes and Aphrodite campers should have been in sword fighting practice, so I walked quickly down to the arena.

The building had no roof, and was ringed with rows of seats. In the middle, Jack, Rebecca, Jess and two other girls were practicing with swords very similar to the one Kevin had given me in England. I headed over to them.

"Hey," Jack greeted me as I approached.

"Hello." I replied.

"We're just practicing some simple moves. Have you ever fought before?" He asked, wiping a shining blade in his hand.

"Not really, the first time was in England." I explained.

"Okay. Use one of the swords on the shelves over there, and practice with… Jess. She's a newbie too, so it should be even." He instructed.

I picked up one of the swords from the shelf. They were all pretty plain, with no decorations on the hilt like the one Jack was holding. I guessed it must have been a present from his father.

Jess was stood on her own, scowling, as usual.

"What's up?" She said miserably as I approached.

"Not much. You?" I replied.

"Same, I suppose." She looked down at the plain blade in her hand. Then, she scowled a bit less, and looked up at me suspiciously. "You're English?" She asked curiously.

"Yes, why?" I replied, puzzled.

"Oh, nothing, just stay away from the Ares campers. They like making fun of people, so it's best if you're as normal as possible." I made a mental note not to talk to Ares' kids, and then looked over at Jack, who was demonstrating a disarming technique. He was very good, I noticed.

"Should we try that?" I asked Jess.

"Yeah, I guess, but don't try too hard. I'm not very good." She replied, raising her sword and turning to face me.

I raised my own sword. Jess lunged out at me, and I blocked her. Instinctively, I lashed out at the hilt of her sword, which clattered to the ground. I stared at the sword on the ground wide-eyed.

"You're really good!" Exclaimed Jess, who was no longer scowling.

"Am I?" I breathed. Jack hurried over.

"Are you sure you've never done this before?" He asked excitedly.

"I'm pretty sure!" I replied, still dazed.

He suddenly lunged forward with his sword. Without thinking, I blocked his attack and attacked back, pushing his sword sideways and pressing the tip of mine on his stomach. He clapped furiously.

"We'll have to get you a proper sword; I think Chiron's got some. With some proper training, you'll easily be the best in camp!" He looked lost in a haze of excitement. I blinked, thinking. Could I actually be good at something? I'd never had any special talents. I could never excel at academic subjects because of my dyslexia, and got picked on for not being able to sit still, due to my ADHD. I was never more than average at the sports I tried, and couldn't even swim, as my parents said the pool was too far away and they were too busy to take me.

Thinking about it, they never really took me anywhere. I had met my grandparents a few times, and remembered them as stuffy old people who never moved from their armchairs except to reach for the TV remote. My father took more of an interest in me than my mother, but he was away more often. Maybe I was meant to be at this camp. Was this going to be my fresh start?

After sword fighting was canoeing, which took place on the lake. My heart sunk when I discovered that this activity was shared with the Ares campers. I walked behind Luke and Rebecca, who also didn't seem too pleased about the arrangements. There were only two people by the boathouse, but they were both huge, bulky boys with orange T-shirts underneath leather jackets and clumpy black boots.

Jack and Rebecca went into the boat house and came out a few seconds later carrying a long canoe with chipped paint between them.

"Sorry Grace, but you'll have to share with one of the Ares." Jack said, looking sympathetic as he pushed his boat into the water.

"I went over to the two Ares campers who were talking in gruff voices. The shorter of the two went into the boat house, and came out dragging a canoe behind him. I gulped and looked at the tallest of the pair, who grinned maliciously at me then strode into the boathouse. I scuttled in after him.

The boathouse was dark, and filled with canoes and kayaks stacked to the ceiling. A mound of tangled rope was lying in the corner. The boy started pulling a boat out of a stack and I grabbed the end. Together we carried the canoe out to the water, pushed it out and jumped in. We rowed around the course of buoys set out until we reached the middle of the lake, then the boy started steering us off course. Desperately, I tried to row backwards and I heard him growl, "Oh no you don't."

"We need to get back to the course," I said nervously.

"Are you English?" He asked, an edge of menace creeping into his voice. I said nothing.

"I said, are you English?" He repeated, his voice rising towards a shout.

"Yes," I squeaked.

"Runty and English, we can have fun with you." He said under his breath. While he was distracted, I continued my attempts to return to the course. The boy turned to face me, an angry frown on his face.

"I told you to stop it!" He stood up and came towards me, the boat tipping precariously. He grabbed me by the collar and pulled me to my feet.

"You know what we do with runts around here?" He asked evilly.

"What?" I replied, trying to sound brave.

"We drown them." I was lifted off my feet and thrown backwards, crashing into the water with a yell. I sank, panicking, to the floor of the lake. I tried to reach the surface, but couldn't. I could feel some unknown force holding me down. An eerie calm came over me, and I suddenly realised why. I was breathing normally, and, although I could feel the cool water against my skin, and a gentle current drifting through my ponytail, I was completely dry.

I kept sinking until I was sat on the floor of the lake, my arms crossed. The lake was dark, but I could still see long green plants drifting, as if caught in a breeze, and tiny fish darting around.

"Who are you?" I heard a nervous, whispery voice ask. I could see shadowy figures around me, keeping their distance from me.

"Grace Westbrook," I replied, surprised that my voice still worked, and looking around for the source of the voice.

"Are you a daughter of Poseidon?" Another voice asked, sounding jumpy with excitement.

"I-I don't know, I haven't been claimed yet." I answered, puzzled.

"How did you end up down here?" Yet another voice asked.

"I was thrown in by an Ares camper. I guess he didn't know this would happen." I said, smiling at the thought.

"I can see your cabin mates on the shore. They look worried."

"I should probably go back. Which way is it?" I asked.

"I will take you back." A girl with long, dark hair and blue tinged skin swam closer, holding out her hand. I took it, and she pulled me incredibly quickly towards to shore of the lake.

"There you go." The girl said, releasing my hand when we reached the shallows.

"Thank you." I said sincerely.

"You're welcome. Come back and visit us soon?" She asked hopefully.

"Of course." I replied, smiling happily.

I stood up and walked out of the water, tiny waves lapping my dry legs. I brushed my clothes down self-consciously and walked towards Jack and Rebecca. There was no sign of the two Ares boys. Jack had his hand pressed to his forehead, and he looked worried.

"Jack! Rebecca!" I shouted, running over to them.

"Grace!" Jack sighed in relief.

"What happened?" Rebecca asked.

"That boy threw me into the water, and I sank to the bottom. I thought I was drowning, but then I could breathe underwater, and my clothes were dry!" I explained, realising with a frown how unlikely my story sounded.

"You can breathe underwater?" Asked Rebecca suspiciously.

"At least you're safe. We thought you'd drowned!" Jack looked extremely happy that his new camper hadn't drowned on her first day.

"Let's go. It's dinner." Rebecca said, but I wasn't thinking about food. Only one thought was running through my mind, over and over: Could I be a child of Poseidon?

**Thanks for reading! Please review, even if you don't like it, tell me why!**

**Alice - It takes place IN THE FUTURE! (Not sure when exactly, about 20 years after Mark of Athena?)**

**Krikanalo - Thanks!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Hello! I know you all hate me now, but just stick with it, please, it gets better, I promise!  
This is set about 20 years after Mark of Athena, which is why Travis and Connor Stoll aren't the heads of Hermes.  
Disclaimer: Do I enjoy being extremely mean to characters, throwing people's OTPs into Tartarus and killing people? No. Then I must not be Rick Riordan, meaning I own nothing but my own characters and plot.  
Also sorry for the short chapter!**

Everyone ate in the open air dining room up by the Big House. When everyone was here, I was told, each cabin had its own table, but in the school term, everyone sat together at the Apollo and Hermes tables, which had been pushed together. Jess and I sat together at the end of the table, away from everyone else, and I told her about the canoeing incident.

"So you could be Poseidon?" She asked, disbelievingly.

"I suppose I could be." I replied, trying to mask my excitement by placing some pizza onto my plate.

"Well, I don't see what else you could be, really." She said, smoothing her strawberry blonde hair, which was coming loose from its knot and frizzing around her face, which was dotted with freckles that hadn't been there previously. Her white dress was starting to get muddy around the bottom.

"I think your enchantments are wearing off." I said dryly, placing a handful of chips – no, fries – onto my plate.

"Really?" She asked, looking at her reflection in a spoon.

"I'm pretty sure." She stood up, carrying her plate over to the large ceremonial fire at the side of the room. Pushing a piece of chicken into the flames, she muttered something that sounded like "my lady Aphrodite, please lift this curse- ah, I mean enchantment." I looked around. Other people were repeating her actions. Not quite knowing what to do, I walked inconspicuously to the fire and dropped a slice of pizza into the fire and, not knowing who to pray to, whispered "please help me, whoever you are." I returned to my seat, feeling considerably less cheerful than before.

After dinner, which finished at about 8pm, Jess got me some shorts to sleep in from one of her half-sisters, then we just chatted in my cabin. She told me how she had been attacked by a monster, but her satyr had brought her here. Although she missed her father, she said, she knew that both she and her father would be safer if she was here until after the school holidays when she would find out if she was allowed back home.

After Jess went back to her cabin, I went down to the bathrooms for a shower. The building was made of a dark grey stone, and the inside looked like it hadn't been cleaned for years, but nevertheless, I felt a lot better under the hot jets of water coming from the grimy showerhead, and I could feel the familiar rush of adrenalin in my veins.

I reflected on the day's events, and anger bubbled up in me as I remembered the harsh words and actions of the Ares boy. Water was swirling around my feet and I looked down. A whirlpool had started around my feet, and water was rushing out of the cubicle, flooding the bathroom. Panicking, I splashed over to my towel, put my pyjamas on a rushed back to the Hermes cabin, hoping nobody had seen. Looking back, I could see water dripping out of the bathroom door and pooling on the concrete. Oops.

The cabin was still empty when I got back, and I decided I would go to bed straight away, but I got a surprise when I looked over to my bed. On it was a pile of books and a thin leather belt. Sticking out of one of the loops was a beautiful, carved handle. I pulled it, and a polished celestial bronze sword slid out. I felt excited electricity tingling in my fingers. I slid the sword back in, and it disappeared up to the hilt. On closer inspection, I saw that some of the books were written in what looked like ancient Greek. On the top of the pile was a small note written in neat, loopy writing on expensive looking paper:

_You are not alone._

Puzzled, but holding on to a faint glimmer of hope, I got into bed and fell asleep.

I woke up suddenly, unsure of the time, but it must have been much later as I could see Jack and Rebecca's sleeping figures on the other side of the room. I looked around, wondering what woke me up. Something moved in the corner of my eye. I turned back. A single spider was crawling across the wall opposite me. I shuddered, a familiar dread creeping through me. For years I had been plagued by nightmares of spiders. Two more spiders were making their way towards me, scuttling across the floor. More and more were following coming from behind the bed opposite. I sat up and pressed my back against the headboard, breathing deeply. The first of the spiders had reached the bed, and was crawling up the bedpost towards me. The others followed, there were hundreds of them now, moving like a sea of black towards me. They crept up the covers, onto my arms. This was worse than any nightmare I had ever had. This was real. I sat, paralysed with fear, as some reached my face. I shut my eyes, but although I could no longer see them, I could feel them all over me. I felt a bite on my cheek, which seemed to snap me out of my paralysis. I leaped out of bed and ran, barefoot, wearing only an orange T-shirt and blue shorts, out of the cabin.

**Please leave a review, even if you didn't like it, tell me why!  
Thank you for reading!**

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	5. Chapter 5

**Hello people! I have realised that this type of story has been done a lot before, so I am thinking of more ideas, but I will also continue this one.  
I own nothing but my own characters and the plot.**

I ran out of the cabin, my heart beating painfully hard. I wasn't exactly sure where I was going, but I got the feeling it was towards the forest. I turned to see if anyone was following me, and slammed into something hard. I looked up to see a boy, about a head taller than me, with short, light brown hair and brown eyes that looked almost black in the dark of the night. I stumbled back, but he put his hands on my shoulders, steadying me.

"Are you ok? What are you doing out so late?" He asked, sounding concerned.

"I could ask the same of you," I sniffed.

"Wait, you're English?" He smiled.

"Yeah, and if you're going to make fun of me, get it over with." I stared down at my bare feet.

"No, no, that's cool. I'm Alex Johns, head of Hephaestus, resident insomniac." He said easily.

"Grace Westbrook." I replied.

"So, Grace, what are you doing out?" Alex asked again.

"I… these spiders came out of nowhere and…" I tried to explain lamely.

"Are you from Athena cabin? They sometimes have spider problems, so their cabin is protected from them." He reasoned, picking a spider out of my hair and flicking it away.

"I haven't been claimed yet." I told him.

"I might be able to do something." He looked lost in an idea. "You should probably go back to bed." He looked down at me. "I'll walk you back."

Back in the cabin, I lay in bed, half wondering if Alex Johns was just a figure of my imagination, and if he was real, what could he do to help me?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Line break thingy ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I woke up late, around 8am, dressed in skinny jeans, an orange T-shirt and the dark red converse that Jess had given me. The cabin was empty, and I realised that I was late for breakfast. I ran down to the dining room and sat with Jess in the same seats we sat in yesterday.

"Grace, are you okay? You look terrible." Jess told me. She was wearing an orange T-shirt and ripped jean shorts, and her short, messy hair was hanging around her face. She looked the happiest I had ever seen her.

"Yeah, I didn't sleep very well." I replied tiredly. I looked over at the Hephaestus kids, and noticed that Alex wasn't with them. I wondered where he was. Sleeping, maybe?

After breakfast, Kevin came to see me in the cabin, his hooves clopping on the wooden floor of the cabin.

"Grace!" He said happily, and hugged me.

"Hi, Kevin." I replied.

"How are things going? You haven't been claimed yet, have you?" He said the last bit slightly sadly.

"Not yet, but I did get this sword yesterday!" I said, showing him the sword, with I kept in the sheath, hanging on the bedpost.

"That's so cool! Does it have a name?" He asked, admiring the engraving on the hilt.  
"Not yet. I can't think of one."

"How about Hunter? That's what it says here." Kevin pointed to a small collection of Greek symbols on the hilt. As I looked at it, the letters changed until it said 'Hunter,' as clearly as if it was in English.

"How come I can read it?" I asked, puzzled.

"It's why you're dyslexic. Your mind is supposed to read Greek." Kevin explained.

"Is my ADHD related to being a demigod too?" I asked, interested.

"Yeah, it's so that you feel aware and awake in battle." He told me. I held up Hunter and looked at the hilt. I studied the battle scenes depicted.

"Are there many battles around here?" I asked, nervously.

"Only if you go on a quest, which doesn't happen often." He said, looking relieved by the thought. "Hey, do you want to come up to the Big House? You can meet some other satyrs and play cards with us." Kevin suggested.

"Yeah, okay." I agreed.

Playing cards with the satyrs, Mr D and Chiron was an extremely awkward affair. We all sat in silence, apart from Mr D, who rambled on irritably about how annoying it was 'being stuck here in charge of all these brats.' I continued to lose round after round of the game spectacularly, mainly because no one would explain the rules. The satyrs, about ten of them altogether, seemed to be slightly afraid of Mr D, and kept glancing nervously at him. They also seemed to be letting him win on purpose, which was annoying, because he got more smug every time he won.

After what felt like hours, Chiron passed cans of Diet Coke around the table. One satyr bit into the aluminium, spraying sticky, fizzy liquid all over the table and everyone sat around it.

"David, you're supposed to drink it first." Chided Chiron gently. Most people got up to clean themselves up, and I took the opportunity to duck out of the house.

I was running down the hill towards the cabins when I ran into something solid. Rubbing my sore head, I looked up to see Alex Johns, a smear of oil down his cheek. So he was real, unless I was hallucinating or something.

"Déjà vu! Anyone would think you wanted to keep running into me, Grace Westbrook." He smiled.

"Yeah, sorry about that."

"Don't worry. I was looking for you anyway." He held out a small black pouch. I opened it, and a necklace fell out. A small golden orb was hanging from the thin silver chain.

"What's this for?" I asked, admiring the delicate charm.

"It should just about fix your spider problem."

"How?"

Alex tapped the side of his nose, a gesture I remembered seeing my Dad do when he was keeping a secret.

"Well, thank you. Do you need anything in return?" I asked awkwardly.

"Not at all. Consider it a welcoming gift." With that, he turned and walked away.

**If you read this, you get a free virtual hug.**

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	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hello! It's ME! Sorry this chapter took a bit longer, I went on holiday for a few days, and this chapter is also a bit longer.**

**I own nothing except characters and plot, blah blah blah.**

At dinner, Alex came and sat with Jess and I. In the light, I could see more clearly the dark shadows under his warm, chocolate brown eyes.

"Hi, Alex." I said in greeting.

"Hey, Grace Westbrook. Jess," He nodded to Jess, who waved briefly. This time, although I still didn't know who I was talking to, I knew what to say when it was my turn to sacrifice some of my food to the flames.

"Thank you for my sword." I whispered under my breath.

Somehow, Alex's invention worked, and he and I walked down to the campfire, every spider we passed seemed to be pushed away, as if by some invisible force.

"Really, how did you make this?" I asked, amazed. Alex tapped the side of his nose again, and smiled.

"A magician never reveals his secrets."

"You're not a magician." I countered.

"Oh yes I am. I am the best magician that ever lived." He said, throwing his arms out wide. A few people walking in front of us turned around, looking at him strangely.

"Y'all got a problem with that?" He shouted. I smiled inwardly. His fingers drummed impatiently against his other arm, as if they were itching to make something new.

"Why don't you hang around with the other Hephaestus kids?" I asked, then looked down, wondering if I'd embarrassed him.

"Let's just say they don't really appreciate my unique personality." He said easily. I wondered if it bothered him. If it did, he was good at hiding it.

"How come you're the head then?" I asked.

"I've been here the longest."

We sat on a log by the huge campfire, which was a warm pale orange. Jess was sat opposite us, with a boy I didn't recognise. They were both laughing at some unknown joke, and she caught my eye through the flames and waved happily.

"She looks happy," I remark to Alex.

"Yeah, for the first time since she got here." He said, smiling at me.

"Who is that guy, anyway?" I asked, curious.

"David Low, from Demeter cabin." Alex replied.

"How long have you been here?" I asked, changing the subject abruptly.

"Since I was nine, six years ago. I used to live with my mom, and she didn't exactly like me. Either that or she was too busy for me. I could tell she only put up with me because she had to, so I saved her the bother and ran away. I had some help from my satyr. I've been here ever since; except for that time I went to that boarding school three years ago. I may or may not have set fire to it after three weeks." He smiled guiltily.

He never really stopped smiling, I'd noticed.

"What about you?" He asked me.

"I lived in England with both my parents until Tuesday, when I was attacked and poisoned by a monster, and brought here in a magical flying car." I explained.

"Well that's original."

Chiron had joined the circle, and was stood in a space between two logs.

"Good evening, everybody. First, does everyone know our new camper, Grace Westbrook?" He gestured over to me. Alex clapped loudly.

"Shut up!" I hissed at him, which only made him clap louder, and he added a cheer.

"I have some exciting news for you all. On Friday, there will be a chariot race!" Excited chatter filled the dark night air.

"As most of you know, to qualify, you need to team up with one other person and build a chariot. It's very simple." The air erupted into loud chatter again.

"Do you want to team up?" Alex asked, a slightly tentative edge creeping into his voice for the first time.

"Yeah, sure!" I replied. I guessed that we'd have a good chance of winning. Alex was pretty good at building stuff, I thought, playing with the necklace around my neck.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Line break thingy ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By Thursday, and Alex and I were almost finished with our chariot. The basic plans I had drawn were covered in pencilled scribblings of notes, ideas and additions. The final plan consisted of a standard chariot, painted with patterns of fire for Hephaestus. The wheels had nets that shot out onto other chariots' wheels, a crossbow that had fire arrows and grappling hook arrows, a fully functioning dashboard, an engine as well as horses, and Alex's favourite feature, drinks dispensers with built in cup holders.

"I think we're done!" Called Alex from the other side of the workshop we were using.

"I just need to finish painting the outside," I answered, filling in the last section of flames. Alex bounced across the room and grabbed a paintbrush from the pot, then settled next to me and began painting. I had often wondered why he seemed so lonely over the past few days. I admit, he wasn't the best with people, but he seemed trustworthy and kind.

I snapped back to reality as I felt paint splash across my nose. Alex was flicking his brush, which was coated with red paint, all over me.

"Alex!" I yelled, and ran after him with my gold paint coated brush.

The next day, Alex and I pulled our chariot up the starting line of the race and attached the two pegasi to the reigns. We seemed to be the last team to arrive, as there are already six chariots lined up. I frowned when I saw the Ares boys' chariot, which was lurid red and covered in spikes and weapons. Jess was not participating, and was sat with her sisters on the edge of the track, David Low next to her.  
"Ready?" Alex asked.

"As I'll ever be," I replied. Alex was driving; my job was to take care of any chariots getting too close. I was armed with my sword, and had a control panel in front of me that was linked to the crossbows and nets on the wheels.

"Welcome to the first chariot race of the year!" Shouted Mr D, reclining on the edge of the track with a diet coke in his hand.

"Are we all ready? If not, tough luck, let's get started! On your marks, get set, go!" He yelled.

I felt the engine start up, and the pegasi started forward. We started to pull ahead, until we were neck and neck with the Ares chariot, which was blasting painfully loud heavy metal music. I pulled the hilt of my sword from my belt and it grew into the full sword and held it ready. The Ares chariot started veering into our path.

"Grace! Get rid of them!" Alex yelled. I pushed a button on my control panel, and heard the whoosh as an arrow shot toward the other chariot. It hit a spike on the side, and something exploded, causing our chariot to swing sideways.

"Ha! Suckers!" Yelled the driver of the Ares chariot. A look of steely determination came over Alex's face and he forced the engine to go faster. The smirks disappeared from our rivals' faces as we pulled ahead, and they started yelling at each other.

"We're almost there!" Alex shouted over the roar of the engine and the rushing of the wind.

"Keep going!" I called back. The Ares chariot pulled closer again. I was really starting to get tired of these guys. Their chariot was too close now, the spikes projecting from the sides almost scratching ours. Suddenly, a huge crash caused our chariot to sway from side to side, and the pegasi shook their manes indignantly. The head of the Ares cabin had jumped onto our chariot and was facing me, a huge, deadly-looking sword in his hand. I held Hunter up instinctively, and we started to fight. He was a strong fighter, but I gave it everything I had, the rush of the battle waking up every sense, making me aware of every tiny detail of what was happening. I felt a strong stinging in my arm, but didn't have time to look at what it was. With a final yell, I brought Hunter down until it clashed, metal on metal, and I pushed with all my might. My rival crashed from the back of the chariot, causing several others to swerve out of the way. We soared over the finish line just a few inches ahead of the Ares chariot.

I stepped down from the chariot, dazed but ecstatic, and was guided to the winners' podium and given a flask of nectar which dulled the sword injury on my arm to a faint throb. Chiron awarded Alex and I with golden laurel wreaths and we stood, hand in hand, as the rest of the campers cheered, except for the Ares boys who seemed a little sore from their defeat. I couldn't stop smiling. That moment was so perfect, I wish I could freeze it forever.

**Sorry for the unimportantness of this chapter. The next chapter will involve important and hopefully more exciting stuff.**

**Reviewers get free virtual cookies!**

**Please review, if there is actually anyone reading. I like reviews. Reviews are so nice. Even if you don't like it, some constructive criticism would be very welcome.**

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**See you soon!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hello! Longer chapter again! (Bigger A/N at the bottom of this chapter.)**

**Disclaimer: As much as I wish I owned Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus, I don't.**

I woke up the next morning with a smile at the sight of the golden laurel wreath on the bedpost, but the smile quickly disappeared when I found a thin white scar about ten centimetres long on my forearm. Great. I got dressed and went towards the dining room for breakfast. Alex was sat with his laurel wreath sit perched at an angle on the top of his curly brown hair. I snuck up behind him and picked it up, then hid it behind my back.

"Morning." I said innocently, taking the seat next to him. He didn't even notice the loss of his wreath.

"Hello." He frowned suddenly. "Where's Jess?" The other Aphrodite campers were also missing.

"She'll be down soon. Her sisters probably forced her into letting them give her a makeover." I said, filling my plate with food. Alex snorted.

"So, we have no chores for the rest of the week." He said happily.

"We need to win stuff more often." I agreed, placing the wreath back on his head. His hand went up to his hair, and he looked puzzled.

We decided to go looking for Jess after breakfast, and took some toast wrapped in a napkin in case she was hungry. I knocked on the door of the Aphrodite cabin. Lucy, the head, opened the door, looking worried and upset.

"Have you seen Jess?" She asked fretfully.

"No, we were going to ask you the same thing," I said, frowning. Lucy turned away, muttering something I couldn't hear, and shut the door.

"We could ask David. He was at breakfast." Alex suggested with a shrug of his shoulders.

The Demeter cabin looked completely overgrown. Ivy had grown over the windows, the ground around it was covered in weeds, and there was a small tree growing from the roof. I nervously tapped the door. David answered it, a spray bottle of weed killer in one hand and a small trowel in the other.

"Have you seen Jess today?" I asked, avoiding the weed killer as he sprayed it on the window boxes.

"Not today. I say her yesterday evening at the chariot race, but I haven't seen her since." He looked puzzled. "Have you checked her cabin?"

"Yes, we went there first."

"I don't know then. Ask Chiron. I would help you look for her, but I'm a bit busy." He held up his gardening tools, then closed the door.

"I've got to go to training. I'll be back in an hour." Alex looked apologetic, then jogged down to the arena, and I walked up to the Big House.

Chiron was sat in wheelchair form on the porch, rifling through a stack of paper and envelopes.

"Chiron, have you seen Jess today?" I asked timidly.

"Not since last night, but it seems there was a breach in the barrier late last night, in the woods. Where else have you looked for her?" I told him about our search.

"I don't know where she could be," I said, pressing my hand to my forehead.

"Don't worry about it too much. Keep looking, but don't go into the woods on your own." I walked off the porch, to do the only logical thing: go into the woods on my own.

I followed the winding path to the gates of camp, passing several groups of dryads and satyrs on the way. I had never seen the gates before, as I was unconscious when I arrived here. They were made of white marble, tendrils of greenery snaking around the edges. An inscription was carved into the marble, but it was in Greek. To my surprise, I could understand it: CampHalf Blood. I looked around. The plants and bushes looked rather battered, and the ground had been disturbed, dust kicked up like someone had been dragged along the ground. A panicky feeling rising in my chest, I turned and ran back towards camp, only to crash straight into someone. Seriously, I needed to stop doing that.

"Sorry!" I said, brushing my jeans down.

"Don't worry." The voice wasn't familiar. I looked up to see a woman with red hair tied back in a pony tail. She was smiling.

"I'm Rachel Elizabeth Dare, the oracle."

"I'm Grace Westbrook. I was just looking for my friend, Jess. Have you seen her?"

"Nope. I haven't seen- Ah!" She doubled over suddenly, her breathing raspy and gasping.

"Are you okay?" I asked, panicking again.

"It's just the oracle. I guess it's your turn for a prophecy." She straightened up again, but her eyes had changed colour, and green smoke was pouring from her mouth. She started to speak in a raspy voice very different from the kind voice I had heard a minute ago.

_"For you revenge comes back to bite,  
_ _To save a friend, one will sacrifice,  
_ _Beware the whispers in the dark,  
_ _A helpful hint from the lark.  
_ _Your loyalty leads to despair and lies,  
_ _But in the end two will be saved by family ties.  
_ _Taken to where voices call,  
__Two may face the hardest fall."_

The green smoke cleared, and Rachel was back to normal.

"You'd better tell Chiron." She managed. She sounded weak.

"Is it okay if I don't tell him until later, I'm not exactly supposed to be here." I said awkwardly. Rachel smiled.

"Sorry, but you'd better tell him now. Just say you saw me at the edge of the woods." I smiled gratefully.

"Thanks," I replied, starting the journey back. I looked back, but she was gone.

I saw Alex hanging around by his cabin and ran over to him.

"I went looking in the woods, and I met Rachel, and I have a prophecy!" I explained breathlessly.

"What's the prophecy?" He asked, fiddling with a few pieces of metal in his hands. I recounted the prophecy to him.

"Come up to the Big House with me?" He nodded, and we hurried up to the house.

Chiron was still sat on the porch, his stack of papers even taller.

"Um, Chiron, I saw Rachel at the edge of the woods, and I got a prophecy." I said nervously. He looked up at me, one eyebrow raised, as if to say, 'at the edge of the woods, were you? Are you sure about that one?'

"What is this prophecy?" I repeated what Rachel had said yet again.

"Looks like you have yourself a quest!" He said, as if that was a normal occurrence.

"Yeah," I replied, unsure of what to say.

"I will not call a council. You need to leave as soon as possible, if you want the best chance of saving your friend. You need just one companion for this quest." He explained everything in a business-like voice.

"Alex." I said, very confident I had made the right choice.

"There is just one problem. You still haven't been claimed, and it has been more than a week now. You do not know the full extent of the powers you possess."

"That's not much of a problem. She picked up on all the training very fast." Alex spoke up for me.

"Very well. You will pack your things and meet back here in half an hour."

As I packed my stuff in a rucksack given to me by Rebecca, which didn't take very long, I pondered the meaning of the prophecy.

_For you revenge comes back to bite,  
__To save a friend one will sacrifice._

Well that was a bit ominous.

_Beware the whispers in the dark,  
__A helpful hint from the lark._

I had no idea about that line. Sounded creepy.

_Your loyalty leads to despair and lies,  
__But in the end two will be saved by family ties._

The first bit was a bit miserable, but the family bit was quite hopeful.

_Taken to where the voices call,_

_Two may face the hardest fall._

Again, miserable much?

With my bag packed with a two spare T-shirts, my spare jeans and my shorts, I pulled on my blue jacket and walked back up to the house. Alex was already there, waiting with Chiron. He was wearing jean shorts, an orange T-shirt and a leather necklace with six wooden beads on it, each one different. I had never noticed it before. Most of the other campers were there too. Chiron gave me a bottle of water, a small bag of ambrosia and a flask of nectar, as well as twenty drachmas and one hundred dollars of mortal money. I had Hunter hidden in my belt, and Alex had a dagger in a pocket of his bag where he could reach it easily.

"Good luck. Maybe you will find more than just your friend on this quest." Said Chiron. Seriously, what was with this guy and being all mysterious?

We walked down to the gate, where I had been not even an hour ago. A few campers wished us luck, but my nerves took over, and I waved, smiling weakly, feeling a bit queasy. We turned and walked out of the gates.

"Are you ready?" Asked Alex, smiling mischievously.

"I doubt it." I replied.

**A/N: So there you have it. Time for Grace and Alex to go questing!**

**Does anyone have any ideas for stuff they could do on their quest? Because I need some stuff to happen in between the stuff I've planned, if that makes sense. PM me your ideas, and I might use them if I like them!**

**Thank you sooooooooooo much to TheGoddessIsAlive and krikanalo for your reviews, it really makes my day when I see your reviews.  
Cookies for you two! (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::)**

**Please review! It makes me so happy when you review! I will give you FREE virtual cookies!**

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	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hello!** **Thank you soooo much for favouriting and following and reading and reviewing, I really appreciate it! The prophecy has changed slightly, read the previous chapter to see the changes if you haven't already.  
This chapter is a bit dialogue heavy, sorry about that.  
I own nothing but my own characters and plot.**

The woods seemed to go on forever before we reached the road, the path narrow and bumpy, winding through the trees. Looking back, I saw a sign for Delphi strawberry farm on the side of the road, Camp Half Blood's disguise.

"So, have you got any idea where we're actually going?" I asked Alex.

"Haven't got a clue. There's a good bar is about a day's walk from here. The owner has a demigod daughter, so he'll let us stay there, probably." Alex suggested. "It's called The Mark or The Lark or something." Alex stared off into the distance in wonder; he looks cute when he does that.

"A helpful hint from the lark," I said. "You think that's the lark from the prophecy?" I wondered aloud.

"It could be. Or, a talking bird could fly down and give us a few helpful tips." Alex reasoned.

"Why am I friends with you?"

"You can't resist my sparkling personality and charming, boyish good looks."

"Yeah, that sounds about right." I smiled, shaking my head.

"You know it's true." We walked in slightly awkward silence for a few minutes, which gave me time to take in our surroundings: pretty bare landscape, flat, grassy fields dotted with trees here. It all seemed peaceful until Alex spoke suddenly. "Damn it!"

"What? What's the matter?" I questioned, suddenly stopping to look around for danger.

"We missed lunch!" He said sadly, kicking at the old concrete of the road with one slightly battered shoe.

"Seriously? That's your biggest problem?" I asked, disbelievingly.

"Luckily, I packed for such an occasion." He pulled a sandwich out of his bag, broke it in half, and offered a piece to me.

"Thanks. What's it got in there?" I asked, taking it.

"Peanut butter and lettuce! The best sandwich ever." He said, taking a huge bite.

"Wait, peanut butter and lettuce? That's weird."

"You say lettuce weirdly." He observed through a mouthful of sandwich.

"I do not!" I squeak.

"You do. Like lett-iss." He mimicked, his voice rising an octave.

"I don't talk like that! And that's how everyone says it in Britain!" I retorted.

"Britain's weird."

"Not as weird as here." I replied, looking around.

"No, you drive on the wrong side of the road and drink tea all the time!" He said, laughing.

"That's because tea is amazing, and we drive on the left because we're awesome." I replied, feeling the need to stick up for my home. "Anyway, we don't actually drink tea all the time, only like in the morning and stuff. At least we make it right; you Americans put the tea in the microwave!"

"Whatever." He mutters.

I tried the sandwich, which, surprisingly wasn't that bad. I didn't give him the satisfaction of saying so, though.

After we had been walking for hours my feet started to ache, I was tired, thirsty and hot. The sun was starting to set over the horizon, making the clouds burn orange.

"Hey, what time is it?" I asked.

"Half past eight. We should find somewhere to sleep." Alex replied, checking a watch that looked a lot more complicated than it needed to be. I pushed the thought of his confusing device to the back of my mind and decided we needed to rest. We sat down beneath a small clump of oak trees at the side of the road. The evening air was cool, and I pulled my jacket tighter around myself.

"Do you want to sleep first?" He asked.

"I don't mind. You can," I replied, covering up a yawn.

"No, you can. It's okay."

I didn't protest anymore. "Goodnight." I said, and curled up in the soft grass.

"Grace! Grace! Wake up!" Alex shook me awake. Instinctively, I drew my sword.

"What's happening?" I asked, trying to get rid of the misty haze left by sleep and stretching my sore neck.

"Shhh, don't move, there's a hydra!" He informed me with a strange excitement as I stared to the other side of the road. A huge monster, with hundreds of heads breathing fire at the surrounding trees, was looming out of the darkness towards us.

"Do we fight it?" I hissed. I remembered from monster classes that if you cut off a hydra head, two grow back. I wasn't sure what the best plan of attack would be.

"We have to, it's seen us!" About twenty of the heads blew fire at us, illuminating the night around us. The trees on the other side of the road went up in smoke.

"Run!" I grabbed all of our stuff and sprinted into the woods with Alex tailing behind me. Suddenly a tree next to me exploded into flame. "We can't outrun it, we have to fight!" I scream over the sound of the roaring monster. I slung my rucksack over my shoulders and got ready to fight. Hunter is slightly shorter than a regular balanced sword, matched perfectly to my height and fighting style. I ducked and dodged the jets of flame, trying to get underneath the monster, to get at its belly, but the walls of fire blocked my path.

"Grace! Cover me!" Alex yelled. He was trying to get around the back. I kept distracting the beast, running around the fire, trying to get closer. Suddenly, it screeched and stumbled forward, golden blood pouring from its stomach and one of its legs. I covered my head with my hands, Hunter held high, and braced myself for impact as the monster fell onto me. The weight crushed me flat into the earth, my blade impaled in the monster. I could hear Alex's muffled yells. The monster was slowly dying, becoming still. I couldn't breathe. The pressure lessened as the monster disintegrated, covering me in golden dust. I took a deep breath. Alex pulled me to my feet and I brushed myself off before bursting into laughter. Alex joined in. It was one of those times when you can't seem to stop laughing even though nothing was funny.

"I guess it's your turn to sleep." I gasped, starting to feel the effects of being crushed as the adrenalin wore off.

"Yeah, I'll try." He lay down under to slightly charred tree, and dozed off after about ten minutes. I sat, polishing Hunter with my sleeve and keeping an eye out for danger.

I woke up to the bright light of the sun rising slowly into the sky; I must've fallen asleep on my watch. I slowly shook Alex awake and was greeted by a sleepy "Wazzaaaaap!"It looked all set to be a beautiful day, there were no clouds scarring the perfect blue sky.

There was a quiet rumbling and I turned around to see Alex clutching his stomach that was grumbling pitifully. "Have you got any food?" he asked.

"No, surprisingly enough. Are you always hungry?" I asked in disbelief, slowly shaking my head.

"I'm a fifteen year old boy, I'm still growing. I'm allowed to be hungry."

"Well you'll have to wait until we get to the Lark." I replied with a sneaky grin. I packed my stuff in my bag, sheathed Hunter and started to walk again.

"How long do you think it will take from here?" I asked Alex who was walking a few metres ahead of me.

"I'm not sure; I've never actually been there. I guess we'll be there by midday." Alex groaned before turning around and mocking me in a little kid's voice "Aw, is little Gracie tired?"

"No, it's just longer than I thought it'd be. And never call me Gracie, ever again." I said, punching him lightly on the arm.

"Fine, fine, I get the message!" He laughed as he shoved me.

We walked in companionable silence for what felt like hours, and I guess it must have been, because buildings started appearing on the horizon just after the sun reached its highest point in the sky.

"Aha! We're nearly there!" Alex pointed, grinning. "So, what's the plan when we get there?"

"I guess we stay there for the afternoon, try and figure out where we're going according to this prophecy, and get some rest." I suggested.

"That sounds good to me." He shrugged. We continued walking, a bit quicker now that our goal was in sight, even though we were both unbelievably tired. Or at least I was!

The Lark bar was a small building made of crumbling reddish-brown brick. The name, next to a small picture of a bird, was painted on a peeling sign in fading paint. Looking through the grimy window, I saw that the place was virtually deserted.

"You're sure this is the place?" I said doubtfully.

"I'm sure. Look harder." Alex urged. I wasn't sure what he meant, but I looked again at the old building, and gasped. The bricks were scrubbed clean, and looked almost new. The sign was brightly painted, and in through the spotless window I could see creatures of all shapes and sizes talking and drinking.

"What the…" I couldn't find the words.

"It's the mist. It's really strong on this place to keep mortals away, and because of the people that come here. I can see through it more easily because I'm used to it, but you're not." Alex explained. I nodded, and we stepped through the doorway. The place had a friendly atmosphere, filled with the sounds of chatting and laughter. The man stood at the bar was talking to a customer, but smiled and waved when he saw us. He was tall, and looked around forty or fifty. He was quite good-looking for an older guy, with bright white teeth, friendly brown eyes and short grey-brown hair. I looked around, still in awe at the array of different monsters in here. One person caught my eye. He was wearing a leopard print shirt and dirty denim jeans, and was sat at an old fashioned Pac-Man machine. He had very messy, curly brown hair. When the game ended, he wacked the machine and turned around. I was surprised, to say the least. It was Mr D.

**So, cookies for:  
Krikanalo  
Guest  
Guest  
Guest  
TheGoddessIsAlive  
CR3ATIV3 (Shut up, bidge)  
AngelHoran139932100  
Cookie Spasms  
Hunteress Of The Stars  
ilovemybunnyrabbit  
bookwormultimate  
golden-priestess  
ofbooksandpages**

**I love you all!**

**(::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)**

**Please please please favourite, follow and review (only if you feel like it though. I don't want to sound too pushy :D)**

**Please tell me if you have any ideas for stuff Grace and Alex can do on their quest, I need some more things to happen before the other stuff I've planned happens (I doubt that made any sense. Sorry)**

**I**** might post a little less frequently from now on, for two reasons:  
So that the story doesn't end to quickly  
And I just started school again.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Sorry it's a bit late, but I'm back in school now. This also hasn't been edited so it might not be the best quality, so yeah, have fun with that.**

"What are you two doing here?" Mr D asked disgustedly.

"We're on a quest. We left yesterday. You were there!" Alex said, almost angrily. I nudged him gently. I didn't want to get on the wrong side of a god.

"Oh yes. Off to rescue another demigod brat, aren't we?"" He smirked.

"I'm sorry if we've disturbed you, Mr D." I said politely, though I didn't mean it. His expression softened.

"You're the unclaimed one, aren't you? Nice to see some manners for a change." He almost smiled, then caught himself. "Why, exactly, are you here?" He asked, injecting extra rudeness into his voice to make up for it. I repeated the prophecy as a form of explanation.

"We thought the 'helpful hint from the lark' might mean here." I explained.

"Yes, it would seem so, wouldn't it? Well, I must be going. Duty calls. More important things to do and more important people to see. Try not to get yourselves killed, not that I really care." He vanished in a whirl of dark purple smoke, leaving the faint scent of grapes in the air.

The owner of the bar gave Alex and me a room upstairs, with two single beds, a TV, and an en-suite bathroom. We freshened up and changed our clothes, then went downstairs for some food. We sat and ate, and I marvelled at Alex's ability to eat five hash browns in under a minute, then we decided to ask around for some help. We got nothing until we came across an old centaur stood at the bar.

"_Where the voices call? _That sounds like the temple of voices. It's under Manhattan." He told us. He was wearing a very faded _Party Ponies New York Convention, 2018 _T-shirt similar to some of the T-shirts Chiron wore, and his hair and tail were streaked with grey.

"_Under _Manhattan?" Alex pressed.

"Yeah, you go through this manhole and you end up in this totally awesome cave. You follow that down to this awesome temple. Watch out though, you'll need climbing kit!" We thanked the centaur and went back to our room.

"I guess we're going to Manhattan, then." Alex said blandly. It was the first time I had seen him not smiling, which showed me instantly that something was wrong.

"What's the matter?" I asked. He was sat on his bed, flicking through the TV channels. His dark curly hair hadn't been combed since he had been in the shower, and was tangled like a bird's nest.

"I used to live there with my mom." He said bluntly. With several small pieces of metal, he made a miniature wind turbine and stuck it in the potted plant on the windowsill by his bed. Alex breathed deeply, and the smile I'd become so familiar with appeared back on his face.

"But that's all in the past. This time, it'll just be you and me, having fun adventures together, and nothing bad will happen. Most probably." I smiled. I admired how strong he was, but it worried me how quickly he could bury his emotions under that smile.

We took advantage of the fact that we didn't have to take turns sleeping, and both went to bed early. I slept almost straight away, despite the fact that I was still fully dressed, and slipped into a dream. It wasn't a normal dream though. I'd heard stories of demigods having dreams that were real, and I guess this was one of them…

I was downstairs in the bar, which was now empty and silent, apart from the old Pac-Man machine in the corner, which was lit up and playing the familiar sound effects. Mr D was sat at the machine, but he wasn't wearing jeans and a shirt this time. He was wearing white Greek robes, trimmed with purple, with grape vines woven in his hair. As if he had sensed my presence, he turned to face me.

"Ah, Grace, here at last. I was wondering how long it would take." He said, sounding bored.

"Mr D… what do you mean?" I asked, confused. I tried to step forward, and sort of glided across the floor. I looked down. My bare feet were hovering a few inches above the ground.

"Never mind that. I am not supposed to help you directly, but nobody needs to know about this, understood?" I nodded slowly.

"No need to look so puzzled, is it really that unbelievable that I might want to help you lot sometimes? Ungrateful demigods." He muttered.

"I'm sorry; it's just… what's happening exactly? Is this a dream?"

"I suppose you could say that. Now listen. One day soon, you will be in real danger. There will be no one there to save you. When that day comes, and only then, you may use my gift." I stood there, waiting for him to continue. He didn't.

"What gift, exactly?" I asked.

"You'll find it when the time comes. You will work it out, you're a smart girl. Goodnight, Grace."

My eyes snapped open. It was morning, and golden light was pouring through the open curtains. I rubbed my eyes and sighed, missing sleep already.

"Morning!" Alex said in a singsong voice, practically skipping out of the bathroom. I rubbed my eyes and rolled out of bed. My clothes were crumpled, but there was nothing I could do about that. I put my sword belt on and picked up my bag, yawning.

"Breakfast time! Come on, we need to get moving! Next destination: Manhattan!"

"Shut up, Alex." I mumbled, my already bad mood worsening.

"Cheer up!" He said in an annoying singsong voice. I punched him half heartedly in the shoulder, which was a mistake.

"Aw, is little Gracie tired?" He said in his little kid voice, then picked me up and threw me over his shoulder in a fireman's lift and carried me into the corridor. He was surprisingly strong, for someone so tall and thin.

"Alex! Put. Me. Down!" I yelled, pummelling his back with my fists.

"Okay, okay!" He put me down, laughing hard.

"Shut up! I'm awake now, see?" I stormed down the stairs into the sleepy bar.

"Was your room okay?" Asked the owner as I sat down.

"Yeah, it was great, thank you. How much do we owe you?" He winked cheerfully.

"Nothing at all. I'm always happy to help you lot from the camp." I smiled gratefully. Alex sat down next to me and poked me in the arm. I punched him again.

"What was that for?" He said.

"For being you." I explained sweetly.

"What can I get you both, then?" The owner asked.

"Pancakes, please." Alex said.

"Me too." I said. The pancakes were absolutely delicious, we each had five in a stack, drizzled with maple syrup and sprinkled with blueberries. Alex practically inhaled his, eating them all in about two minutes.

"How do you eat so quickly?" I asked, disbelievingly, forgetting that I was cross with him.

"I've already told you, I'm a growing boy." I finished up with my food, and we left the bar.

- Line Break Thingy-

"Can't we just get a cab?" Alex asked after five minutes of walking.

"Can you see any around here?" I snapped irritably, and was immediately sorry I'd done it.

"I guess not." We walked in silence for a while. Nothing happened to break the mist of tension that had settled around us. My mind wandered to the same place it had been drifting for the past few days. I pondered how I had even got here. I had always dreamed of having adventures, a new excitement every day, and here I was, ripped from my old life and thrown head first into a new one. Everything different about me made sense! I belonged there, this was a dream come true. But somewhere in the back of my mind, something was telling me that this was all a dream, that I would wake up in England, and everything would carry on exactly as it was before.

"Grace, what's the matter?" Alex asked gently.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you." I said quietly.

"It doesn't matter; you're still the record holder for longest time spent with me without hating me."

"I don't hate you, you're my best friend."

"Then tell me what's wrong." Alex looked at me, eyebrows raised. I sighed.

"I just think that this is all too good to be true. Soon enough, I'll wake up and it'll all have been an amazing dream."

"I can assure you, I'm not a figure of your imagination. See?" He pinched me. I smiled.

"Thanks."  
"So, we're good now?"

"We're good." I replied.

**Thanks for reading! Please review, favourite and follow if you want to, it would make me really happy.**

**Thank you if you have already done the above things, I'm very grateful to you all!**

**Any ideas for stuff Alex and Grace should do on their quest? It would help me out :)**

**Krikanalo: Thanks for your ideas, I have incorporated them into the story a bit later on!**

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	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Sorry this chapter is really late, someone *Cough* CR3ATIV3** ***cough*** **took ages to edit.  
Please read and review! Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease? For me? *Puppy eyes***

"Are we nearly there yet?" Alex whined for the hundredth time in the last ten minutes.

"I don't know. Shut up." I said for the hundredth time in the last ten minutes.

"Surely we should be there by now, or at least we should be able to see it!" He moaned.

"Aw, is little Alex tired?" I copied him in my little kid voice.

"Oh, I see what you did there." He said slyly.

"Annoying, isn't it?" I agreed.

"No, I found it highly amusing."

"Of course you did."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Never mind."

"Look!" Alex said excitedly, pointing into the distance. I looked. A huge forest, sprawling out into the distance and as far as the eye could see.

"Uh, that wasn't there two seconds ago, right?" I said, staring at it hard.

"Magic forest! That's so cool!" Alex yelled, running straight in towards the trees.

"Wait!" I shouted, then, sighing heavily, I ran after him, wondering, once again, why I was friends with this crazy kid. Maybe because he was crazy, but grounded at the same time.

The forest was kind of eerie, with tall, thin trees coated in dark green leaves. Thick, white mist swirled around the dark trunks, making it hard to see.

"Alex?" I called, completely lost. There was no answer. Unlike the forest at Camp Half-blood, this felt creepy, unfriendly, and abandoned. There were no signs of any nymphs or satyrs to help guide me back.

"Alex!" I yelled again, getting worried now. There was still no answer. What could I do? If I moved, I'd get even more lost, and Alex was probably getting further and further away by the second. I could try and climb a tree to look for him, but the branches started too high up for me to reach.

I heard a rustling behind me, and spun around to see the source of the sound.

"Alex?" I whispered, hopefully. There was nothing there, but now I was completely disorientated. I pulled Hunter from my belt, bracing myself for any oncoming attacks.

"It's a camper. Stand down!" Said a slightly disappointed voice from the bushes. A girl stepped out, wearing black jeans, a black T-shirt and a silver jacket, and carrying a bow. She had electric blue eyes and spiky black hair with a silver circlet resting on top. Several other girls, all wearing the same silver jackets and carrying bows, some with silver circlets in their hair.

"We are the hunters of Artemis. Who are you and what are you doing here?" The girl with spiky hair asked.

"Grace Westbrook." I introduced myself hastily.

"Art thou a demigod?" Asked a girl with long, wavy black hair.

"Yes, but I haven't been claimed yet. I am on a quest with Alex Johns, son of Hephaestus, but I lost him in here somewhere." I said, looking around desperately.

"Don't worry; we'll help you find him. I'm Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus and head of the hunters of Artemis. Cool name, by the way." Thalia was staring at me hard.

"Nice to meet you." I replied.

The hunters, as it turned out, were amazing trackers. After a few minutes, we found Alex sat on a log under a tree, shouting my name and playing with pieces of metal, looking bored out of his mind.

"You idiot." I shoved him.

"Sorry, I got lost." He replied, smiling. I realised I had grown in the last couple of weeks; I was now the same height as Alex's lips.

"These are the hunters of Artemis." I told him, gesturing to the dozen girls stood a little way off.

"I've heard about them. Aren't they some kind of immortal girl group or something?" A few of the hunters huffed disgustedly, and I heard a few mutters of 'boys'.

"No, we are the immortal servants of Artemis; we have pledged to give up the company of men in return for immortal life. We hunt monsters and send them back to Tartarus, where they belong." Corrected Thalia amusedly.

"And we fight in wars sometimes. Wars are fun." Squeaked a small girl at the back of the group.

"So, a monster fighting immortal girl group?" Alex asked innocently. The girl with long, black wavy hair scowled.

"Stop mocking us, boy." She growled.

"Calm down. He is a boy, after all." A girl with blonde hair said, giggling.

"Girls, shut up." Thalia said impatiently. The giggling girls looked down at their feet.

"Where are we, exactly?" I asked nervously.

"This forest has no known name, but it is essentially a magic forest. It moves around, appearing in random places all over the globe. It is virtually never ending, but it is easy to find your way out if you know how." Explained Thalia.

"You could come out anywhere." Added the blonde girl, swishing her ponytail. Her voice was old fashioned, and sounded about a hundred years out of date.

"Sweet, can you drop us off in Manhattan?" Asked Alex, making it sound like some kind of taxi service.

"We can try. It may take a while; we might have to wait for the forest to move." Thalia said.

"How do you know it's going there next?" I asked.

"We don't." Thalia smiled wickedly.

"Great…"

According to Thalia, time moved differently inside the forest, which meant that it could be days before we arrived, and I could tell Alex wasn't too happy to be stuck in the middle of a forest with a bunch of boy-hating girls. I chatted with Thalia while the other girls set up camp, putting silver tents in among the trees and stoking a large campfire.

"So, how long have you been a hunter?" I asked.

"A little more than twenty years, since the day before my sixteenth birthday."

"That must be weird for you, watching the world get older around you."

"It was to start with, especially as my friends got older and I stayed the same. Sometimes, I see people or things that remind me of them, and it all comes back; all the memories, the good times and the bad." She was staring at me again.

Don't you ever regret your decision?" I knew I was probably prying, but I was interested, and my curiosity always gets the better of me.

"All the time." With that, Thalia stood up stiffly and walked into the middle tent.

I kept my distance from Thalia, not wanting to make her feel worse than she probably already did. Alex also stayed away from the rest of the group, sat on a log behind the tents.

"What's up?" I asked quietly, sliding onto the log next to him.

"Oh, nothing. Those girls are just annoying." With a final flourish of his fingers, he placed a tiny, delicate bronze flower into my palm. I closed my fingers around it, marvelling at how small and beautiful it was, and slid it into my pocket.

"Thanks." He was staring into the dark distance, and didn't reply. Through the haze of mist and canopy of leaves, I could see the sky blazing orange and pink.

"Come on, I think there's food!" I said in an attempt to persuade him back to the camp.

"I'm not hungry."

"You're always hungry."

"Not right now."

"Are the hunters really that bad?"

"Yes." I huffed in frustration and stormed back to the fire. Sometimes my anger got the better of me, I admit it, but at least I tried, right?

After an amazing buffet dinner of freshly prepared food, Thalia took me aside to talk in private.

"You would make a good hunter." She said matter-of-factly. I guessed she wasn't angry at me anymore.

"Really?" I replied disbelievingly.

"Yes, not many girls show as much potential as you. We would welcome you." She pressed several glossy leaflets into my hand, and I slipped them into my pocket thoughtfully, before retiring to my tent.

**Any ideas, please tell me. I NEED them.**

**Thanks to Krikanalo/koryandrs for the forest idea. (::)(::)(::)(::)**

**Cookies for reviewers, followers and favouriters! I made them fresh! They're blue!  
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**Thanks for reading!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Hello again, wonderful people! I know this chapter is a bit early, but the last one was really late so I'm making up for that here.  
Ok, enjoy it! Please consider reviewing? Maybe?**

I lay in my camp bed, flicking through the leaflets thoughtfully. I had been given my own tent, decorated with rich furs and a comfortable enough bed. Thoughts swirled around my head. Maybe not yet, but after the quest was over… I had no family to go back to anymore. Maybe I'd make a good hunter, as Thalia had said. I didn't know. Alex poked his head through the tent opening. His face fell when he saw the leaflets in my hand. I wondered how much longer his weird mood would last.

"Um… night." He said awkwardly, and disappeared. I pulled the bronze flower from my pocket, then had an idea. Unclasping my necklace, I slid the chain through a little loop on the back of the flower, and it hung prettily next to the spider-charm.

The next morning, after an amazing night of sleep, I woke feeling refreshed and ready. I got dressed ran out to eat breakfast. The hunters were chatting and eating, and a few of them smiled and waved in greeting when they saw me. Alex was standing in the shadows of one of the tents, eating a bread roll mournfully.

"Have you thought about it?" Thalia nudged me and asked quietly.

"Yeah. Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll leave it, at least until we finish this quest." Thalia sighed.

"That sucks. Hopefully we'll see you around, if you change your mind." She sounded genuinely disappointed at my decision.

"Yeah, that'd be good." I stuck my hands into the pockets of my jeans awkwardly. After a few silent seconds, Thalia spoke.

"We, uh, should be close to Manhattan by now."

"Oh, good." I wasn't sure what to say, so I grabbed a bread roll turned around to fetch my bag.

Alex had already packed his stuff, and was carefully avoiding the hunters again.

"Are you scared of them or something?" I asked him. I was funny how much he avoided them, like they had germs or something.

"No… I don't know, I just don't like them." He said uncomfortably.

"Well, we're going now, so you don't have to put up with them any more." He looked relieved.

"Good. They freak me out." He said simply.

"Let's go, then?" I asked.

" Yeah, let's go." I sighed, frustrated and stalked off to say goodbye to the hunters.

"Goodbye." I said, shaking Thalia's hand.

"I hope to see you again soon, Grace."

"You too. See you around." The other hunters gathered around, shaking my hand and saying their goodbyes. One handed me a map.

"Follow these directions and you shall be in Manhattan by even." She said. Her voice was old-fashioned, as were so many of the other hunters'.

"Thanks." I took the map. It showed the forest, but it was moving. Several pulsing yellow dots were stood in a cluster in the centre of the forest, each labelled with one of our names. I saw one labelled 'Alex' a little way off from the rest. At the edge of the map, under a bold black label that read 'Manhattan' was the bustling metropolis itself.

"It's very easy to use. Good luck." I nodded gratefully and walked back to Alex, who hadn't moved to say anything to the hunters.

I held the map, watching the hunters move further and further away from us until they disappeared off the edge completely about two hours later, though I wasn't sure how fast time was passing, and only Alex and I were left, our yellow dots bright in the otherwise dull forest. Alex kicked leaves half heartedly. The tiny sun dial in the corner of the map inched closer and closer towards the west, and I re

"What's wrong? We're not with the hunters any more." I said, frowning. Alex sighed, and stopped walking. I stopped, and spun around to face him.

"What?" I demanded.

"You're going to join the hunters, aren't you?" I stared at him, my mouth open, all words lost.

"Well? You are, aren't you? You're going to join them when we've finished this quest. I saw you with Thalia. I saw the pamphlets." His voice steeped in sadness. He looked defeated. I made my mind up there and then.

"No. No, I'm not joining the hunters." I said with finality.

"You're… not?" Confusion flooded his face.

"No. I'm not. I'm not leaving my best friend." I gave him a small smile.

"Who?"

"You, stupid." Without warning, he hugged me. I tensed, then relaxed, my arms sliding around him. His chin rested on the top of my head, and I decided I'd have to grow a bit more so that he wouldn't be able to do that. There was silence, but it wasn't uncomfortable.

"Sorry." He said after a while.

"What for?" I asked, slipping out from his embrace.

"Suspecting you. Not trusting you. Being annoying. Being a loser. Should I continue?" He said, cheerfully.

"One, you had every right to suspect me. I wasn't sure if I would join them myself, for a while. Two, you're not annoying, or a loser." I smiled up at him, and I could see tension and anxiety leaving his eyes where I hadn't even noticed it before. I looked up through the canopy of leaves above us. The sky was pale pink, dotted with faint white stars. It was visibly changing to purple.

"Time is really messed up here." I noted.

"Do you want to sleep first?" Alex asked.

"I'm not tired." I said, yawning. I realised that I was. Although the day seemed to have been short, I was really exhausted.

"Yes you are." I nodded, slightly, looking down at the map. We were about two thirds of the way to Manhattan. Alex slid down a tree trunk until he was sat on the ground. I sat next to him, then placed my head down on my rucksack.

"Night," I said, quietly. I thought I heard Alex reply, but I was already gone.

"Wakey, wakey, rise and shine!" I heard Alex call quietly. I stretched and yawned, my head still pressed into my rucksack. I rolled over, squeezing my eyelids shut to keep out the bright rays of sun. Wait… sun?

"Alex, you were supposed to wake me up so that you could sleep!" I said, frustrated.

"I never agreed to that, did I?" He reasoned. I sighed, and stood up.

"Aren't you tired?"

"Not at all. Plus you look funny when you sleep." I sighed.

"You were watching me sleep? That's a bit stalker-like." I said dryly.

"But did you really expect anything else from me?"

"I suppose not." I picked up and shouldered my rucksack. The mist had cleared, and the forest no longer felt creepy. The warm rays of dappled sunshine shone through the leaves, as if the weather had changed with my mood.  
"I'm hungry." Alex frowned and dug through his rucksack. "And I haven't got any food left."

"We'll be in the city soon, we can get food then."

"What do we do after that? Look in every manhole in Manhattan?"

"I don't know." I admitted. " Let's just get there first. It doesn't look far from here."

An unknown amount of time later, I heard the sounds of traffic in the distance.

"Alex, can you hear that?" I asked.

"Yeah…" He looked lost in a memory. I could see something grey in the distance, through the trees.

"Look! Come on!" I grabbed his arm and ran towards it. The map was covered in thousands of tiny blue dots, which, according to the map, were mortals.

"Wow," I whispered, watching the dots move like ants.

"Wow," I heard Alex echo from just behind me. Suddenly, my shoe hit hard concrete instead of soft, mossy forest ground. I blinked, confused. I hadn't been that close to the edge of the forest, had I? I looked over my shoulder, and saw towering grey walls shooting up around us, and no sign of the trees.

"Wait, what?" Alex muttered.

"I know, right?" We were in a long, thin alleyway. At the end, I could see cars and people rushing past.

"Let's go find a coffee shop." I suggested. Alex nodded in agreement, brushing leaves off his jeans. I zipped up my blue jacket, hiding my campT-shirt.

"Have you got a jacket or something?" He shrugged off his rucksack and pulled out a green hooded jumper, which he pulled on. He looked older than his fifteen years, which I guessed would be useful.

"Good." We walked out onto the pavement and immediately got overwhelmed by the amount of people.

"Where are we going?"

"I don't know, I can't see anything. Look for cafes or coffee shops or something." I suggested, craning my neck in vain to try and see over the mass of people around me.

"There's one over there." Alex pointed straight ahead of us.

"Let's go. Alex pulled me closer to the inside of the pavement, into the warmth of a coffee shop. It was bustling with people, and the air smelled like coffee and freshly baked bread. We sat at a table, finally able to relax.

**Yeah... not the best chapter, I know, but more exciting stuff coming soon, I promise.**

**Cookies for koryandrs, ThePirateOfTheSeaOfMonsters and MoonlightStars777. (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)  
Don't eat them all at once! Love you guys!**

**BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE *runs into distance laughing like a maniac wearing an apron stained with blue food colouring and carrying an armful of blue cookies***


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: New chapter time! Lalalalala. Okay I hope you enjoy it!**We sat in the coffee shop, drinking coffee (I didn't know what kind, Alex ordered it) and eating cake for what felt like ages, soaking up the warmth and the buzz of normal, mortal life, for what felt like hours. I hadn't realised how much I had forgotten about the mortal world until I was back in it; mobile phones, internet, the news, and all the things I thought I couldn't live without when I was at home. I looked across the table to Alex, who also seemed lost in thought, his long, slender fingers curled around his mug. I sipped my own drink, and warmth spread through my body, heating parts of me that I hadn't known were cold. It tasted great, even though I didn't have a clue what it was.

"Alex, what did you order me?" He looked around, dazed for a second, then looked back at me and shrugged.  
"I told them to surprise me." I shrugged in reply.

"Fair enough. It's good."

"Yeah." I could tell that neither of us wanted to leave. It felt good to be normal again, if only for a little while, as much as I enjoyed being a demigod.

"Do you ever miss being normal?" I asked Alex.

"I find that highly offensive." He set his mug down on the table.

"You know what I mean."

"Nope. It was six years ago; I don't really remember it. It feels weird, to be honest." I supposed it would be different for the people who only stayed at camp in the summer, but for Alex, and me, now that I had no home to go to…

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but do you think your mum still lives here?"

"I don't know. I wouldn't want to go and see her, even if she did."

"Sorry."

"Don't be. It's not your fault, after all." I wanted to point out that that wasn't what I was sorry for, but I thought it best to leave it.

"What do we do now?" I asked, changing the subject.

"I guess we go sightseeing, and hope something points us in the right direction."

"That's not a very good plan."

"What else are we supposed to do? Anyway, I want to show you around my hometown." I shrugged again.

"Cool, I guess."

"That's right. Now, let's go. Where do you want to go first?"

"I don't know, Empire State building?" I suggested.

"Ugh, that is such a stereotypical tourist destination. Okay, fine, whatever. But we'll have to go to the statue of Liberty afterwards, if you want to get the full tourist experience."

"Okay, let's go." I picked up my bag.

"Do you want to take the Subway?" Alex asked, pointing to the nearest station, about thirty metres down the street.

"Yeah, okay."

We boarded a crowded train and stood, huddled together in the crowds of people, for the five minute journey. Over the loudspeaker, a woman's voice announced the next stop. Alex cursed under his breath.

"What?"

"I may or may not have taken us on the wrong train."

"You idiot."

"Hey, in my defence, I haven't been here on my own for almost seven years," He retorted.

"How far away are we?"

"It's not too far; I think we can walk from here." The metal doors slid open and we pushed our way out onto the bustling platform and up the stairs onto another street.

"Is it always this busy here?" I asked exasperatedly.

"This is actually quite quiet. You should see it at rush hour."

"No thanks."

"Good choice, you'd get swept away with all the other munchkins." I punched his arm gently. I could see the EmpireState towering above all the other buildings surrounding it, by far the most impressive building in sight.

"So, how do you like America?"

"It's cool."

"Do you prefer it to Britain?"

"I can't make an informed decision until I have seen more of the country, I'm afraid."

"Looks like a road trip is on the menu, then."

"But neither of us can drive."

"I will be able to soon!"

"I still don't want to have to spend hours on end stuck in a car with you."

"That's low."

"You know I'm only kidding."

"Hey, do you want to get doughnuts later?" Alex pointed to a doughnut shop across the road. I craned my neck to look at it, and was suddenly yanked backwards, a strong around wrapped around my throat.

"Alex!" I cried, choking, as I was pulled back into an alleyway off the side of the street. I felt acutely aware of everything. All the people were walking in slow motion, as were the cars. Nobody seemed to hear my cries for help. I struggled like crazy until I felt the cold, razor sharp edge of a blade replace the arm around my neck. The blade pressed into my skin, and I felt warm blood trickle down my neck.

"My, my, you're a pretty thing, aren't you? You look just like your mother. I could almost have let you slip away, if it weren't for your eyes." The hissing voice seemed to turn my blood to ice. It was low and gravelly.

"Who are you?" My voice sounded strangled and rough.

"I am Ares, the god of war." I froze. What would a god want with me?

"What are you doing here? How do you know my parents?" I asked, hoping to sound tougher than I felt.

"That's no way to address a god, young lady." His voice was louder this time, booming and echoing through the alley. Panicking was spreading through me. There was no point in calling for help, no one could hear me.

"Now, to answer your questions, I am here because of some unfinished business I had with your father. And your parents? I'm not talking about those foolish mortals you lived with back in your quaint little British town, I'm talking about your real parents." I could tell he was taunting me.

"Who are they?" I asked, trying to ignore the fact that my T-shirt was now wet and sticky with blood around the neck.

"Don't you know? That insufferable Percy Jackson, son of old fish-face, and Annabeth Chase, daughter of wisdom. Not that it matters now, they haven't been seen for almost fourteen years." A great weight pulled on my heart. I had found my parents at last, and lost them again almost instantly. But I wouldn't give up, not yet.

"What do you want with me?" I spat, trying to hide my sadness and fear.

"Well, your father was rude, ignorant and disrespectful to me. Since he can't pay for his actions, I guess you will have to do." I struggled again, thinking of ways to buy myself time.

"But I haven't done anything!" I spluttered, starting to feel light headed from blood loss.

"You are your father's daughter, that's enough. I liked your mother, though. I might even regret this later. Not that I care!" He laughed, a cold, high laugh that didn't suit him. The arm that held me still shook, and the sword pressed further into my skin. I was hard to breath. My legs could barely hold me up.

"Aren't you scared, Grace Jackson?" He mocked.

"No. I'm not scared of you. You're just a coward, too afraid to fight a little girl." I managed to choke out."

"You dare insult me?" He roared. "Well, it'll be the last thing you ever do." The pressure left my neck, and I gasped for air. Then, my body was on fire. I looked down to see blood all over my front, my T-shirt ripped to reveal a long, deep gash over my stomach as well as on my neck. I staggered forwards, Ares' cold laughter echoing in my ears, mingling with the rush of traffic and chatter. My head spun

"Grace!" I fell to the ground, my hands pressed to the wounds, slick with blood. The world tipped sideways, and my head hit something hard.

"Grace! What happened?" I looked up to see Alex's face hovering over me, blurry and unfocused. I tried to speak, but couldn't. The darkness was closing in around the edges of my vision. I closed my eyes.

**So there you have it! Grace's secret identity has been revealed! Some of you guessed it already, well done to ThePirateOfTheSeaOfMonsters and MoonlightStar777!**

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	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: New chapter. Yay. I'm really tired.**

I opened my eyes, and breathed deeply. A strangled cry escaped me. It felt like my chest was being ripped in two, the skin tearing. I felt a warm hand in mine, and twisted my head sideways, ignoring the pain in my neck. My throat was dry and scratchy, and my eyes stung in the light, which was so bright after so long in darkness.

"Grace!" It was Alex.

"Alex," I croaked.

"What happened? I thought- I thought you were dead." He said, his voice catching slightly on the last part.

"I- It was Ares," I stuttered and tried to push myself into a sitting position, my head spinning, then had a minor coughing fit, pain flaring up all over me.

"Hey, hey, relax, you're fine." Alex said soothingly. "I'll go get you some nectar, okay?" I nodded and relaxed back onto the soft pillows. Alex slipped out of the room, giving me the opportunity to gather my thoughts and take in my surroundings. My parents; Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon (I guessed that Ares meant Poseidon when he said fish-face) and Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena. That made me half mortal, quarter Poseidon and quarter Athena, didn't it? Well, that explained a lot. I was lying in a small, single bed in a relatively plain but pleasant room with cream painted walls and sturdy wooden furniture. I guessed that it was a guest room. I thought that we were still in Manhattan, or at least New York, because I could still hear the buzz of city life outside the small window. The wounds I had acquired were cleaned and bandaged, though still very painful. The door opened and Alex stepped back in, holding a glass of golden liquid. I smiled weakly and took the glass, taking a painful sip that slightly numbed the pain all over me.

"Better?" Alex asked, sitting back down on the small wooden chair next to me. I nodded, which still hurt, though less than before.

"A little bit."

"You're going to have a wonderful scar on your neck, and another one on your stomach. I'm quite jealous."

"Yay, lucky me." I said dryly.

"You've been out for two days now, and we've been giving you nectar and ambrosia, so you should be okay soon. Do you want to try and get up?" No, I didn't want to get up. I was tired and I felt horrible, but I knew I had to. I nodded, swinging my legs out of the bed.

"Hey, if you can reach the kitchen, I think Sally's making cookies."

"Who's Sally? Where are we?"

"We're still in Manhattan. I couldn't take you to a hospital, you would've died without nectar and ambrosia, and I remembered something Chiron told us once: that if we were ever in trouble in Manhattan, there were a couple living here that knew about our world, and could help us. So here we are." Alex explained.

"How do they know about us?"

"Gee, aren't you full of questions today? I think Sally had a demigod son, but he died young. Most of us do, you know."

"Great." I said dryly, then had another coughing fit that made my head throb. We had entered the lounge/dining room. There was a soft blue sofa and a large flat-screen TV in front of a wooden dining table surrounded with chairs.

"You sit down. I'll go get Sally." Alex disappeared out through another door, and I collapsed onto the sofa, already exhausted, even after such a short trip.

"Hello, honey. How are you feeling?" A friendly, pleasant woman's voice said from across the room. I looked up. A woman walked across the room and sat next to me, a plate of blue cookies in her hand. She had dark brown hair that was streaked with grey, eyes that were a kaleidoscope of blues and greens, and a pretty smile. I should have said something like 'I'm fine, thank you for looking after me,' but instead, I blurted about the first thing that popped into my head.

"Why are those cookies blue?" I mentally face-palmed at my own stupidity, but Sally just smiled, as if she was used to rude, ADHD demigods asking stupid, useless questions.

"You sound just like my son." She smiled reminiscently. "My ex husband once told me that blue food didn't exist, so I started making blue food all the time to prove him wrong. I guess the habit just stuck." She shrugged.

"I feel much better, thank you for looking after me." I said, answering her previous question.

"That's okay, I'm just glad you're feeling better. Your friend was so worried. I don't think he's eaten since yesterday, even though I tried to get him to eat something." He handed me the plate of cookies. I took one and bit into it. I tasted so good after so long without food. It was still soft and warm in the middle, the chocolate chips still melted, and it was pretty much the best thing I had ever eaten.

"This is amazing." I told Sally after I had finished it.

"Thank you, sweetie. Dinner will be ready soon, so don't spoil your appetite." She walked back out to the kitchen. I sat there stuffing myself with cookies, as any self-respecting demigod would do, until Alex came back.

"You look much better now." He commented as he took a seat next to me. "So, what did Ares want?"

"He said he knew my parents – but not the ones in England. My real parents."

"So, who were they? And why did he try to kill you?" He asked, intrigue obvious on his face.

"They were called Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase."

"So you're not a demigod?"

"Not in the normal way. They were both demigods, my dad was a son of Poseidon and my mum was a daughter of Athena. He wanted to kill me because he had some kind of grudge against my dad."

"So you have the powers of both gods. That makes sense."

"Yeah." I said, not knowing what else to say.

"Grace Jackson is a cool name."

"Thanks."

"Grace Jackson?" It was Sally, carrying a stack of plates to the table.

"Yeah, that's my name." I said, puzzled. Sally almost dropped her stack of plates. She practically threw them onto the table and hurried over to me.

"I thought maybe- you look so much like her- after all this time- I have to go call Paul!" She muttered and rushed out, tears starting to pour down her cheeks. I stared at Alex, alarmed. He shrugged. Sally rushed back in, a phone held to her ear.

"Paul? It's Grace! It's our Grace! She's come back! Get here now!" She almost yelled into the phone, sobbing by now. She collapsed onto the sofa, her face in her hands.

"Sally?" Alex nervously approached.

"I'm so sorry, honey, you must think I'm insane!"

"Oh, no, of course not." Alex said reassuringly, though I could tell he thought the opposite. Sally smiled through her tears.

"Percy Jackson is my son. Annabeth Chase is his wife. You are my granddaughter!"

**Yay grandparents.**

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	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Sorry this is a bit late, I was in Paris! It was awesome! Anyways, back to the story.**

"Your- granddaughter?" I could hear the words, but I couldn't quite understand them.

"Grace, we've been looking and waiting for you, your brother and your parents to come back home for almost fourteen years now! Where have you been?"

"I've been in England. I got attacked by a monster and brought here almost two weeks ago. I didn't know I was a demigod until then!" I explained, amazed.

"Do you know where your brother is?"

"My brother?" The idea seemed so foreign. It hadn't even crossed my mind that I might actually have a sibling, even though I'd always wanted one.

"Luke Jackson. He would be about seventeen by now. Isn't he with you?"

"No, I'm sorry."

"It doesn't matter. You're here, at last!" Sally- no, grandma- pulled me into a hug.

"My husband will be here soon." She shot back to her feet again. "Oh! The food!"

"I'll get it." Alex offered.

"Thank you, sweetie." Sally relaxed back onto the sofa with a sigh.

"So, what happened to my family?" I asked, desperate to know.

"One day, there was a hurricane on Long Island, where you were living. Percy and Annabeth built a house there, so you'd be near the camp if there was any trouble. Anyway, there was this hurricane, and after it had cleared, you were all gone. The house was untouched. It was as if you'd all gone out for the day or something. You were almost one year old, and your brother was three." A single tear rolled down Sally's cheek, and I realised that my eyes were misty as well. I wondered what my life would have been like if I had grown up in that house on Long Island, surrounded by a loving family. Now I would never know.

"Oh, I can show you them if you like." I nodded mutely, and Sally grabbed a framed photo off a shelf and handed it to me.

"This was their wedding day." Sally wiped the tear from her cheek as I studied the picture. It showed a handsome man, around twenty years old, with messy, jet black hair and my sparkling sea-green eyes wearing a black tux, in arm around the waist of a beautiful woman also around twenty, with blonde curls, virtually identical to mine, pinned up so that spirals hung around her face and stormy grey eyes. Her facial features were also the same as mine, the shape of the eyes, the nose, the mouth, the cheekbones. She was wearing a gorgeous white dress, very simple with no straps and tiny gems around the neckline. They looked like the happiest people in the world.

"Sally?" I heard the click of the door closing, and a man walked in, wearing a suit and carrying a briefcase.

"Hey, Paul." Alex said from his seat next to me on the sofa.

"Hello Alex. What's going on?"

"This is Grace. She's your granddaughter." Alex said simply.

"Hi." I said awkwardly.

"Is it really you? After all this time?" Paul said softly. I smiled weakly, not sure if I was supposed to reply. I felt really awkward, sitting with these strangers, even though I knew who they were now.

"Paul!" Sally came out of the kitchen and kissed her husband's cheek. "It's our Grace!" She said excitedly. She looked as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Paul looked at me in wonderment, scrutinising my face as if detecting lies. Suddenly, his face broke into a smile.

"She looks just like Annabeth." He said softly.

"With Percy's eyes." Sally added, smiling, though I could see tears pooling in her eyes again.

"But still no sign of Luke?" Paul said anxiously. Sally shook her head gently.

"Come on, the food's ready." Sally said, brushing her tears away and breathing deeply. Paul dropped his briefcase by the door and sat at the table. Alex and I took the empty seats opposite him and started to eat the freshly cooked pizza set out for him by his wife, who was now sat next to him.

"So, what happened to you?" Paul asked, referring to the cleaned and bandaged wounds on my neck and stomach. I explained what had happened with Ares, and Alex listened, fixated, because he hadn't heard the full story yet either. By the time I had finished the story, which didn't take very long, everyone had finished their food, and mine was cold. I nibbled a bit off the edge of the pizza tentatively. It didn't really help that I was full up on cookies, either.

"Don't worry, sweetie, you don't have to eat all of it." Sally said kindly. Ugh, should I call her Sally or Grandma? I'll go with Grandma. I smiled gratefully.

"I guess you two will want to be going pretty soon, won't you?" Paul asked. Alex nodded, sighing.

"As much as we'd like to stay, we should be going." Alex agreed.

"Are you staying for the night?" We looked over to the window. The sun was setting quickly over the crowded city skyline, the sky bright orange beyond the black silhouettes of the buildings.

"Yes, please, if it's not too much trouble."

I stood in the shower, under the steady stream of hot water, feeling the familiar power surging under my skin. The wounds healed a bit more, leaving two long, thin white scars to add to my collection. I sighed tiredly. Even if I had found my family now, we had lost two days while I had been unconscious and we still had no clue where we were going.

I got dressed back into an orange camp T-shirt and jeans, both of which had been washed. I tied my hair back up into a ponytail, so that the damp curls hung down to my shoulder blades, the shorter strands tucked behind my ears. I looked in the mirror over the sink at my reflection. I looked older – taller and more mature. My features finally seemed to look right on my face. I could see the striking resemblance to my mother. My eyes, identical to my father's in the picture, shone brightly, the blues and greens blending and shifting like the bright ocean.

I slept in my clothes, back in the guest room that I had woken up in no more than three hours ago. Alex took the sofa in the lounge, saying that he was perfectly happy because he got the TV. As I lay in bed, following the swirling patterns of the ceiling, I wondered to myself: were my parents still alive? Was my brother still alive? How were we meant to save Jess if we couldn't even find her in the first place?

**By the way guys, sorry about the A/Ns on the last chapter. I was reeeaaaaally tired.**

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If you guys want, I'll give you a sneak preview of another Percy Jackson fanfiction I've been writing, and you can tell me what you think!**

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